The wind blew the volcanic ash towards the east, thankfully the home of the Rock Mountain wolves was to the south-west. "Chiaki!" Huanhuan called out as she pushed her way past the people gathered around the group seeking refuge from the Beast City disaster.

"Huanhuan!"

"What happened? There was an earthquake and there have been aftershocks for days!"

"Indeed." Langzhu said as he joined the group.

Chiaki shook her head. "Highcliff City of Beast is in ruins, the mountain is a volcano and it started erupting. Everyone here escaped this way."

"We need the healer of this village." Harvey called out. " W have some people with serious injuries and I need a place to bring them."

Langzhu nodded to Chiaki for her short explanation and quickly got Harvey''s attention. "I'm the healer here! Quickly bring them to my home!" The left together with those hurt and their families.

"Frost Cloud!" Huanhuan called, waving to the young leader as he appeared.

Soon the situation was fully explained and the silver wolf looked deep in thought. They had a rough cold season, so many new mouths to feed would be hard on his village. Save for the plants that Huanhuan had asked to grow now that the season was warm enough. But the promise of four new healthy females all willing to add mates to their families, from the Rock Mountain population! And if the burned female survived, that might make it five... though she might not be healthy enough to have more young after her ordeal. There was also Chiaki herself to consider, another female... but one he believed wouldn't stay forever. Still, there was the chance she might take another mate while here. They could protect four to six more females and the relatively small amount of males that came with the group could provide enough hands and claws and fangs to ensure that.

"I have an announcement!" Frost Cloud said as he left the meeting he'd had with the groups representative. The weary travelers and the members of the village all held their breaths. "As the leader of the Rock Mountain Wolf Tribe I accept the people from the Highcliff City of Beasts as new members of our village! We shall begin work on new homes for them immediately!" He barked. Many people cheered and some young males howled in excitement.

"Can Chiaki stay with us?" Huanhuan asked softly.

"Her family is large, much larger than before the cold season. We don't have that room."

"Oh." She brightened though. "Well, then I'll make sure to help get her a good place to live!|" Huanhuan punched her fist into the air.

"With you?" Chiaki said slyly as Huanhuan walked with them through the village.

The younger blushed. "Frost Cloud and I are mates, uh... during the Winter." She breathed out a long breath, a lot happened after you left. Even with knowing you ended up at this village because of the river, I ended up far downstream myself just before it turned cold. I was saved by a snake feral-" She glanced to see if Curtis reacted, he did look a bit curious. "-and he was able to get me here, but it was right before a huge ice storm hit and he ended up Wintering with the Rock Mountain Wolves." The blush returned to her face. "I, uh, well... I'm going to take him as my second mate, he's so gentle towards me." By now Curtis was fit to be pushed over by a small breeze. Another female willing to take a snake feral as her mate?! Wait wasn't this one also from the same world Chiaki was from? Were all their females so willing to love?

"Soooo, what's his name?" Chiaki said, sounding like a teen-age girl talking about crushes.

"Sang De." Huanhuan looked down. "I'm really trying to do what the Beast God wants of us, but it might be a little longer until I'm comfortable having more than one husband." She them smiled at Chiaki. "But I see, as always, you haven't had that dilemma!" She teased, motioning to the males walking with them.

"I can keep up with them too!" Chiaki said as she posed, then she winced. "Ow, okay... maybe I could do with some rest."

"More than a little rest." Qianhuang said pointedly nodding to the small bump in his mates abdomen. "You have been through too much in the last few days, everyone has. Huanhuan, could you allow my mate to rest in your home? We males will of course start helping with the village plans."

"Of course! Chiaki is my friend, she can rest easy!"

"Me too, papa!" Kimba called.

"No, my cub." Qianhuang said sternly. "You and your brother will stay and protect your mother for our family." And let your own ankle rest. He added silently in his head.

Small ears drooped a little. "Yes, papa."

"Good." Qianhuang said then ruffled his sons fur. "We will count on you."

Kimba followed after his mother and the other female, careful on his foot. Huanhuan looked for another cub to join them for a moment. Chiaki's mates had all left, but there was no one else. "Chiaki? I think your other cub-"

"Copper!" Kimba called out and a tiny red and orange snake rose out of his fur. "He's papa Curtis' son!" The cub said, his mastery of the common language making itself known.

Huanhuan blinked at the pencil thin snake. "You didn't loose them all!" She said and grabbed Chiaki into a hug. "And- again! You are going to have another baby!"

Chiaki laughed. "Sh-, Huanhuan, not so loud! All the males will notice!" And a female with two successful pregnancy's and pregnant again was a very desirable trait in a mate. She'd be swamped in proposals.

Inside the stone dug out home of Huanhuan and Frost Cloud, Chiaki sunk into the hide covered pile of soft grass that was the bed. She shuddered as she finally let it all hit her. She'd lost her home, their home. She'd lived through the first stages of a volcano and days of being on the run from the effects. She couldn't fathom the loss of life. Tears began to fall, silently at first but quickly becoming wracking sobs.

"Mama?" Kimba questioned, unsure of what he could do.

Huanhuan's heart ached for her friend, she spoke softly. "Just be there for her right now, okay?"

Kimba curled up beside his mother who burred her face in his chest fur and openly cried. She let it all out, now that they had made it to their destination. No more holding it back to keep her mates from being distracted, she was sure they were worried anyway, considering the other females in the group had broken down during the trip. Fear, she'd never been through such a disaster in her life before. Relief, she'd been relatively untouched personally by the events. She just let it all out, the mass of tangled feelings that she'd kept bottled up for the last several days.

She fell asleep.